Internet access is becoming ubiquitous and the means by which the access is obtained varies widely. For example, the internet access may be through a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), a cable modem, a fiber optic network, a wireless communication network, etc. When the internet service provides high data transfer rates it is often referred to as broadband internet service. Broadband internet service is generally understood to be a service that is always on and offers data transfer rates on the order of mega-bits per second for both download and upload.
A client device as defined in the present disclosure is a device that may use the internet from one or more of the sources from which internet service is available. Such client devices may include conventional client devices such as a smartphone, a tablet, a feature-phone, a laptop or desktop personal computer, etc. Other client devices may include devices that are embedded within devices that perform other functions. For example, an entertainment system in a home or in an automobile, a home appliance such as a refrigerator or washer/dryer, a wristwatch with a heart rate monitor, a medical device such as a blood pressure meter or insulin sensor, a utility meter, a gaming console, a camera, a navigation device, industrial equipment, etc., may include a client device. These types of devices may be collectively referred herein as machine type client devices.
These diverse types of client devices may access the internet service directly through one of the sources of primary internet access as mentioned earlier. Alternatively, a client device may access the internet through a local network, which performs distribution of the primary internet access to the users localized in a given area. Examples of such local networks include Local Area Network (LAN) using Ethernet, Wireless LAN (WLAN) commonly known as Wi-Fi, or some other local area networking schemes. When a client device is in the proximity of a location where such a LAN or WLAN access is available, it may access the internet using the LAN or WLAN. FIG. 1 illustrates an example scenario of client devices accessing the internet over a WLAN network that is connected to a traditional wire-line internet service such as a DSL or a cable modem. The local area where WLAN service is available is often referred to as Hotspot. The device that offers the WLAN service in a given local area is referred to as an Access Point (AP). In the present disclosure, the terms Hotspot AP or Hotspot are used interchangeably to refer to the device that offers the WLAN service in a given local area.
A Hotspot AP may be connected to the DSL/cable modem through any of the standardized interfaces such as Universal Serial Bus (USB), Ethernet, or proprietary interfaces. In some cases, the DSL/cable modem and the Hotspot AP may be part of a single physical device. In such cases, the interface between the DSL/cable modem and AP may use Secure Digital Input Output (SDIO) or another suitable interface.
Client devices may also obtain internet access over mobile wireless networks. These mobile wireless networks are often referred to as Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN). The internet service offered by such networks is often referred to as mobile broadband internet or Mobile Broadband (MB) and the mobile wireless networks are often referred to as mobile broadband networks. The terms WWAN and MB are used interchangeably herein.
As the variety of client devices has increased and the demand for MB access has increased, a device known as a mobile Hotspot is commonly used. A mobile Hotspot device includes both a modem for MB access and a WLAN AP (Hotspot AP) to distribute the internet to local client devices. FIG. 2 illustrates the block diagram of an example mobile Hotspot device. As shown in FIG. 2, for the chosen example, the MB modem and the Hotspot AP may be connected to each other via one of the standard interfaces used in the industry such as USB, SDIO, or proprietary interfaces. In another mobile Hotspot example, the MB modem and the WLAN AP may be an Integrated Circuit (IC) as shown in FIG. 3.
Some mobile Hotspot devices may serve as a single function device, i.e., they only perform the mobile Hotspot function. Such mobile Hotspots may take many different form factors such as a mobile Hotspot integrated into an automobile, a standalone device that may be carried around with or without a battery, integrated into an accessory device such as a tablet, a standalone device that may be powered by a power wall outlet, etc.
Some client devices have multiple capabilities and being a Hotspot is one of the capabilities. For example, a smartphone may have a mobile broadband modem that may be used to get mobile internet service directly from the mobile broadband network as illustrated in FIG. 4. The flow of data is as shown in FIG. 4 from the mobile broadband modem to the application processor that processes the download and upload data and interacts with the user via the display and other elements of the user interface such as audio, vibration, etc. The smartphone may also have a WLAN modem to access internet service over a Hotspot AP. When it is near a Hotspot AP, it may use internet service from the Hotspot as illustrated in FIG. 1. In another smartphone example, the mobile broadband modem, the WLAN AP and the Application Processor may be an integrated device as shown in FIG. 5.
A smartphone may also serve as a mobile Hotspot to provide internet service over WLAN to other client devices in its vicinity. FIG. 6 illustrates an example scenario where the smartphone serves as a mobile Hotspot and provides internet service to a client device that may have only a WLAN access. In another smartphone mobile hotspot example, the mobile broadband modem, the WLAN AP and the Application Processor may be integrated into a single IC as shown in FIG. 7.
A mobile Hotspot may be part of an accessory or peripheral device for a client device such as a tablet. Other examples of such accessory or peripheral device may include a standalone mouse, a battery pack, a cover, a stand or any other machine type client device. FIG. 8 illustrates an example scenario where a cover or a stand for a tablet includes mobile Hotspot connectivity. The mobile hotspot may be connected with the tablet client device using General Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) lines, Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus, Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), USB, SDIO, Bluetooth or any other standardized or proprietary interfaces. The data transfer and some of the control, such as power on/off, configuration, and notifications between client device and the mobile Hotspot may occur over the WLAN connection, or over any of the other available interface connection.
A client device may use a mobile Hotspot when internet access is required. A mobile Hotspot may be provided by a smartphone, by a single function mobile Hotspot device, or by an accessory such as a tablet cover that may include a mobile broadband modem and backup battery. A client device must continually search and choose the best Hotspot available.
FIG. 9 shows a block diagram 900 of example software architecture of a conventional client device for interfacing with a WLAN and with a Network Interface Card (NIC) such as an Ethernet when using a Windows operating system (OS). As shown in FIG. 9, the WLAN hardware (HW) block 902 is controlled by the WLAN Device Driver 904. The WLAN Device Driver block 904 interfaces with the WLAN Application (APPLN) 906.
Similar to the WLAN interface, the Network Interface Card (NIC) Device Driver block 908 interfaces with the NIC HW that may be present. The NIC Device Driver block 908 interfaces with the MiniPort Driver (MPD) block 910, which in turn interfaces with the Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS), block 912. The NDIS block 912 interfaces with the NDIS User mode Input/Output (UIO) block 914. The NDIS UIO block 914 provides a unified interface to the WWAN Service block 916 independent of the underlying HW. The WWAN Service block 916 interfaces with the MB Application Programming Interface (API) block 918 which provides interface to all the applications such as MB application 920 which may use the MB internet service. The processing blocks 904, 908, 910, 912, and 914 operate in the Kernel mode of the OS whereas the other processing blocks operate in User mode of the OS. The MB application 920 uses the primitives defined by the MB Interface Model (MBIM) to communicate with the MB API block 918.
When a client device such as a tablet receives service from a mobile Hotspot, the quality of service may vary due to a number of factors such as the signal quality of wireless communication network may fade because the user may be mobile, the congestion in the communication network, the interruptions in data transfer during handovers, etc. Furthermore, the network access capability including roaming capability of the mobile Hotspot may be controlled by the contents of the Universal Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) that runs in the Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC). The UICC may be attached to the mobile broadband device such as the mobile Hotspot. The client device may not have direct access to it. Conventional client devices do not have the capability to access the wireless communication network status and the USIM/UICC status when accessing a MB network through a mobile Hotspot.